AS Arsenal strode off the pitch having dismantled Aston Villa, chests puffed out and fists raised in the air, they looked like champions in waiting. The first half was cagey and Villa were, if

It gave this fixture a big-match feel and Arsenal used the stage to turn on the style with a 4-1 win. Gabriel opened the scoring, before Martin Zubimendi, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus netted for a rampant Gunners side. Ollie Watkins' stoppage-time consolation did nothing to dampen the mood.

It is not so much that Aston Villa were necessarily better than Arsenal in the Gunners' 4-1 win on Tuesday. Their win wasn't inevitable. It certainly seemed, however, that Unai Emery had Mikel Arteta's number. Villa would absorb the strength of the first press, find a way of drawing Arsenal out of position and spring their transition threats.

Arsenal doubled down on their strengths in pressing high. It took some time to click, but it was crucial to their success against Villa

Unai Emery rejected claims that he snubbed Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta after the full-time whistle in Aston Villa's clash at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has responded to Unai Emery's comments about not shaking hands after their Premier League clash on Tuesday, December 30.

The league leaders are still without Ben White and Cristhian Mosquera but Gabriel came on to make his first appearance since November.

Unai Emery has explained why he didn't shake hands with Mikel Arteta following Aston Villa's defeat to Arsenal.